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U.S. taxes when living abroad: what surprised you?

pgmresmenia
#1

When I first learned that Americans living abroad may still have US tax obligations, I thought, Seriously? So you have to pay taxes twice?


Turns out, there are ways to help avoid double taxation, like foreign tax credits and certain exclusions. But you still have to file the right forms to claim them.


I’ve been reading more about this lately, including information from Universal Tax Professionals, and now I’m wondering what else I might have missed.


For those of you who moved abroad from the US, what was the most surprising thing you learned about your tax obligations?

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ai accountingone
#2

@pgmresmenia

🤣 Totally. For me—working with US expats here in Thailand—the biggest surprise is usually the Thai side. Many people focus on their US filing but overlook Thai tax residency, foreign income brought into Thailand, and keeping proper records of where that income came from. Those are often the areas that raise the most questions later.

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